Marshall County Recycling Center Still Smoldering Due to Fire

MARSHALL COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — Debris continues to smoke next to the old Bishop Landfill just outside the Guntersville City Limits.

Tons of recyclable materials caught fire July 6 in the Big Marshall Recycling building at the site.

The 84,000 square foot steel frame building was 30 feet high, and much of it was densely packed cardboard and sheet rock.

Marshall County Commissioner Richard Kilgore said he is unaware of any larger structure fires in Alabama.

The commissioner said firefighters pumped over 1.2 million gallons of water the first day, but that only contained the flames.

It did not stop the burn.

The smoke and fumes continue to be a problem for some residents in the area, but Kilgore said it may continue for a couple more weeks.

Kilgore, the facility’s owner, the Albertville Fire Marshall, and the Marshall County EMA director joined an inspector from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) at the site Monday.

“[The owner] is doing all he can to get it out, and we’re doing all that we can to assist him, but that’s a tough fire to put out.”

Kilgore originally predicted it would burn and smolder for up to three weeks.

The ADEM inspector estimated four to six weeks, and Kilgore said putting water on it just causes it to smoke more.

The fire marshal has not yet determined the cause and continues his investigation.

The ADEM inspector tested water samples for runoff, but Kilgore does not expect there to be a problem for area residents.

“We ask them to be patient with us, and keep their windows closed and their doors closed, and stay in as much as possible,” Kilgore said.

“Really that’s all you can do.”

The facility owner salvaged and removed the metal frame of the building, which officials say hampered initial efforts to get water on the burning debris.